Conventional drawers are typically supported by a slide fastened to the side walls of the drawer. The slide engages a runner mounted beside the slide on an inside cabinet wall or other vertical support. Another variety of drawer is supported on the bottom surface of its side walls on top of a long runner or set of rollers. These arrangements support the drawers securely, however, they require some sort of supporting structure to the side of or below the drawer. While it is also known to partially suspend a drawer from a runner mounted above the drawer, these systems typically require rollers underneath or on both sides of the drawer to stabilize the drawer and support its front end. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 3,784,274 to Holmes, et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 3,387,906 to Edwards.
Unfortunately, it is not always possible or convenient to provide a supporting structure below or on the sides of a drawer. For example, if the drawer is to be hung from below a shelf, it would be inconvenient to build a support structure hanging down from the shelf merely to support the drawer. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 319,428 filed Mar. 2, 1989, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,995,323, discloses a modular shelving and hanger bar system which provides for shelves made up of four parallel elongated slats running the length of the shelf. The shelves are suspended by vertical support members at their fronts and by the wall at their backs. If a conventional drawer support system were used in which drawer runners are mounted below the drawer, then the drawers would either be placed on shelves where they would consume valuable shelf space, or bulky hanging supports would be required to reach down under the drawer from below a shelf. If conventional side mounted drawer runners were used, bulky hanging vertical members would have to be suspended from the drawers to support these runners. The hanging supports would limit the width of the drawer and add weight and complexity to the drawer support system. Accordingly, there exists a need for a drawer which can hang from below a shelf stably and securely balanced without any bottom or side support. Such a support system should hold the drawer in a closed position and prevent the drawer from being accidentally pulled out of its supports.